Fun times with the Rainwaters

Our Rainwater family came and visited us today and we sure had a wonderful time. The boys played for nearly 7 hours straight...not one argument, disagreement, or tear was shed. It is really amazing. They are like kindred spirits. It also helps that I really like "Aunt Vicki" as well.

Will has his Halloween party at preschool tomorrow. He is so excited about dressing up as Ironman and going to school. I hope he has a big time. If only I could be a fly on the wall....

Here are some pictures from our day.

And a special little shot out to my new sweet friend Emily. :)

Preschool Open House

Last night we all went to Will's preschool open house. It was so neat seeing his room, his little cubbie, his art creations, pictures of him, and most of all...to see him excited about being there. He did NOT want to leave. We were amazed. Even with the lure of ice cream and Chick-Fil-A, he still wanted us to stay in his classroom. It spoke volumes to me.

Today I am going with him and his class on a field trip to the library. I can't wait to see him in action and be a part of his day.

New Trampoline Ladder

Tampoline jumping just got a lot easier since D-D ordered us a new ladder. Here is some video of the kids putting it to good use (per D-D's request).

Maw-Maw's first embroidery project

I am sure there will be many more where this one came from (hopefully).

Will's big sleepover

Breakfast buffet the next morning.

The end of the night. Can't you tell?

Intense Wii playing which leads to massive meltdown before bedtime.

The 3 stooges and Abby. :)

My little boy had such a big time last Thursday night because his two favorite cousins and his Ney came and spent the night with us. They played so hard and had so much fun. It was such a treat to have them all here and I am sure quite a treat for Lee and Hugh who had a nice and quiet evening all to themselves as they celebrated their 10th anniversary. Here are some pictures from our little overnight adventure.

Fun at the zoo with the T's

We had dinner the other night with the "T" family and then went to the zoo for a little trick-or-treating. It was such a nice time. The company was wonderful and the zoo put(s) on quite a performance for Halloween. The kids had a ball and got some good candy to boot. A very fun night.

**Sissy's costume is a bit pitiful because it was too hot to wear her monkey costume so I had to create a make-shift ballerina outfit with a bathing suit and some tights.

Krispy Kreme Love...

How long does it take the Taylor family to down one dozen hot and fresh Krispy Kreme donuts?

Ohhh...about 8 minutes. 8 very memorable, enjoyable minutes!!

We came, we went, we conquered.

Happy Birthday Big Jul!

Boy we had such a fantastic day. We had a great visit with Ney and a grand time at Aunt Lee and Uncle Hugh's house. Will absolutely adores his cousins and rightfully so. They are such good boys and so very sweet to Will. Lee fixed Big Jul's favorite...pepper steak and chaplan salad...and it was soo delicious. The birthday cake wasn't too bad either (in spite of the fact that we burned the first cake and had to start all over again). The kids both crashed seconds after their heads hit the pillow and Brian and I aren't far behind them. We are so lucky to have such a loving, fun extended family.

Our fun family date night....

The kids and I met Brian down by the river tonight for dinner and had such a nice time. The weather was perfect, the food good, live music, a playground, and miniature golf. It was so much fun. There is just something about being around water. So peaceful and soothing.

No news is.. I guess...good news.

There is not much going on around here. The week came and went fast. Ney stayed the night with us Tuesday (We had a very nice visit.), Will had his first field trip on Wednesday (He rode the big yellow bus for the first time and loved it.), and we are going to ****** this weekend to celebrate Big Jul's birthday on Saturday. Sissy has been practicing the Happy Birthday song all week and Will can't wait to see his cousins. He is also excited about making Big Jul's cake. I have a reputation for lop-sided cakes so we will see how this one turns out. Pressure is on. I am making no promises (Big Jul) other than I am sure it will taste good in spite of how it looks. :)

I am looking forward to the weekend, the beautiful weather, and being with family. There is nothing better than seeing your kids happy and loved on.

Happenings...

The pace of our lives has certainly changed since the weather has cooled down (lots of playing and jumping outside), Will started preschool, and my bible study began. We are so much busier than we used to be but everyone seems happy. Since Will is in school three days a week, I really try and preserve the other two days just for long mornings in our PJ's, cartoon watching, lots of batman, and snuggle time. I can't tell you how much I look forward to those two days and I know the kids do too. Sissy misses Will (as do I) when he is gone and we all miss our lazy mornings.

Every afternoon I sit down with Will and work on his reading, writing, and numbers--"homework"....and each day that he does his homework, he earns a ticket. After so many tickets he gets a prize. Today he finally earned his Ironman costume so he was beyond thrilled. It is so neat watching him learn and even better....being the one to teach him. He is a smart little cookie.

A conversation between Will and Sissy

As the kids were sitting at the table eating ice cream after dinner, the following conversation took place...
Will: "Umm...this is good mom."
Sissy: "Moe" (her attempt to say more)
Will: "No Sissy...we aren't going to mow. The grass isn't long."

Oh be still my beating heart. I love those two kids (and my husband) with every ounce of my being.